The present invention relates to a multi-radio broadcast communication system. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system for reprogramming radio personality information in a multi-point radio system using a significantly reduced instruction set. In multi-point mobile radio communication systems, each radio contains radio personality information identifying the broadcast parameters for the particular radio, and a unique identification code distinctively identifying each respective radio from all of the other radios in the system. In multi-radio wireless broadcast systems, information from a broadcast manager can be used to reprogram radio personality information in the respective radios. In particular, wireless radio personality information downloads can be made in a one-to-one basis over the air to each individual radio from the communication manager. That is, a desired file and/or information is downloaded to each radio from the communication manager individually over the wireless packet-data network. This is true even though many groups of radio users may use the same radio personality files in multiple radios with the only exception being the unique identification code for the respective radios. The unique identification code is sometime referred to as the "logical ID" code. The logical ID code is a unique identification number that distinguishes one radio from another to the communication manager.
Multi-point radio broadcast systems are commercially available. For example, Ericsson, the assignee of the present application, commercially sells "EDACS" radios which can reliable receive wireless broadcast information from a communication manager, such as Ericsson's commercially available "Profile Manager." With the EDACS radio, information is broadcast to the radios from the communication manager via a packet data network.
As will be understood to those of skill in this art, the packet data network includes a packet transport layer comprising transfer units. As shown in FIG. 19, the packet transport layer is, in the present OSI standard one of seven layers. Of course, alternative standards can be used with the present invention, if desired. At the highest level of the packet network of FIG. 19 is the application layer. As is well-known, the application layer prepares messages, which are progressively imbedded with various headers through to the transport layer. The transport layer is a focus of the example embodiments of the present invention, as described below. Following the transport layer, the messages are packeted in the network layer, lumped into frames in the data link layer and then routed onto the network connection by the hardware layer. The hardware layer connects the client to the server via the network connection, such as the Ethernet. The frames are received by the client or server and are then unpacked by a regional application up to the application layer, where the messages are used.
In Ericsson's commercial Profile Manager, the transport units include instructions which were delivered radio-by-radio to reprogram the radio personality information on the respective radios, without a need for a wire cable connection. While this profile transport layer is effective, any improvements in throughput on the system-wide level are valuable. For example, if a 9,040 byte personality file is to be delivered to one hundred radios, a total of 37 minutes is required. This can be calculated as follows. Since 452 bytes can be sent per packet, 20 data packets are required for the 9,040 byte personality file. Two data packets are required to initialize communication on a one-to-one basis with the individual radios (one packet to initialize and one packet to acknowledge the initiation) and two packets are required to disconnect the communication, the total data packets required is 100 (2 initial+20 data+20 data acknowledgments+2 disconnect)=4,400 total packets. At 500 milliseconds per packet, the total time required to transmit the 4,400 packets is 37 minutes.
The system that can deliver the same 9,040 byte personality file to, for example, the 100 radios, in significantly less time is desirable.